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Xavier University

Cincinnati, OH 45207
Ohio Midwest
Private Medium Developing team
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Nate Lie

Nate Lie (pronounced LEE) was announced as XU’s head women’s soccer coach on May 13, 2017. In his first six seasons leading the Musketeers, Lie has collected 68 wins, won two BIG EAST Regular season titles, a BIG EAST Tournament Championship and earned three bids to the NCAA Championship.


In 2022, Xavier finished the season with 14 wins, tied for third most wins in program history. After finishing second in the BIG EAST, with an unbeaten conference record in the regular season, Xavier finished runners-up at the BIG EAST Championship and earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Championship for a second-straight season. Xavier advanced in the NCAA Tournament for the second time in program history after taking 4-1 win over Tennessee in the first round.


Following the 2022 season, graduate student Molly McLaughlin, the 2022 BIG EAST Midfielder of the Year, was named to the United Soccer Coaches All-America Third Team, becoming the third Musketeer to earn All-American Honors, and the second to earn the honor during Lie's tenure. McLaughlin joined Samantha Dewey who earned the honor following Xavier's break-through season in 2019.


The 2021 Musketeers finished the season at 16-3-1 overall, winning the program's second BIG EAST Regular Season Championship earning the opportunity to host the league Semifinals and Finals at Corcoran Field. Xavier earned the program's best rankings in the United Soccer Coaches Poll (No. 11) and the RPI (No. 7) during the season and earned the program's first at-large bid and home match in the NCAA Tournament.


In his first three seasons, Lie led the program to an incredible turn around, capping off his third year with a win over Virginia Tech in the 2019 NCAA Tournament, the program's first NCAA win. The Musketeers finished the season with a record 17 wins after winning both the BIG EAST regular season championship and tournament championship.


In addition to the school-record win mark, the 2019 Musketeers also set a school record for most shutouts at 12, and recorded the second most goals scored in a season (43), assists in a season (42), points in a season (128), and the second lowest goals against average (0.71), with each of those marks being the best for the program in the last two decades.


In his second season as Musketeer head coach in 2018, Lie lead Xavier in a break-through season, with the Musketeers posting a 10-8-3 record. The Musketeers' .548 winning percentage in 2018 marked the first winning record for the program since 2013. Xavier's 10 wins in 2018 were the most for the program since 2003's 12-win season.


The Musketeers finished a program-best fourth in the BIG EAST standings at 4-3-2, hosting a BIG EAST Championship match for the first time since joining the conference. The team's 2018 BIG EAST Semifinal appearance was the first since joining the BIG EAST in 2013, and the first time the Musketeers have advanced in the postseason since 2003.


Among Xavier's notable results from the season are the program's first win over DePaul, and a 0-0 double overtime draw against No. 4 Georgetown to close out the regular season, the first result against a top-five team in program history.


Xavier's defense forced nine shutouts during 2018, the most since 2000's school-record 11 shutouts and the second most in a single season in program history, matching 1985 and 1991's season totals.


Xavier finished the season with 31 goals, the most since 2006's 31-goal season.


Lie led the Musketeers in a notable turnaround in his first season. Xavier finished the 2017 season at 8-8-4 overall, marking the first season at .500 or above since 2013, when Xavier finished 9-8-1.


The Musketeers' finished with a record of 4-3-2 in BIG EAST play the first winning conference record for the program since 2005. Xavier earned the program's first berth to the BIG EAST Championships, the first conference tournament appearance for the Musketeers since 2003.


Lie came to Xavier after serving as University of Cincinnati associate head coach. Lie, who joined UC in January of 2013 as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator, previously spent four seasons as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator for his alma mater, Miami University.


Lie was in charge of the UC defense under head coach Neil Stafford, a stingy unit that helped the Bearcats finish 11-5-4 in the fall of 2016 with a 0.99 goals against average and nine shutouts. UC compiled a 42-30-12 record in the four years Lie was on Stafford’s staff.


The success of the 2016 season came on the heels of a very successful 2015 campaign. The 2015 Bearcats finished 13-6-5 and captured the American Athletic Conference tournament title and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2002. Following the season, Lie was selected as UC’s Assistant Coach of the Year in a vote by members of the Athletics Department.


In the first two seasons Lie spent on the UC campus the progress began to show. After a four-win season in 2012, prior to his arrival, the Bearcats went 8-11-1 in 2013 and 10-8-2 in 2014.


During his four-year stint at Miami prior to UC, the RedHawks compiled an overall record of 54-26-5, including 25-14-5 in the Mid-American Conference (MAC). In 2012, Lie helped guide Miami to the MAC regular-season and tournament titles as well a trip to the second round of the NCAA Championship after the RedHawks went 20-3-1 overall and 10-0-1 in MAC play.


As a student-athlete at Miami from 1996-2000, Lie was a two-time Academic All-MAC selection for the men’s soccer program, earning First-Team Academic All-MAC honors in 1998, in addition to Academic All-Ohio accolades that same season. In 1997, Lie earned Second-Team All-MAC honors. He graduated from Miami in 2000 with bachelor’s degrees in economics and finance, and received a graduate degree in sports management from Miami in 2015.


Nate lives in Pleasant Ridge with his wife Emily, sons Michael and Josh, and daughter Grace.

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Katy Etelman

Katy Etelman joined Nate Lie's Xavier's women's soccer staff in August 2021. She joined the Musketeers from Ball State where she spent three seasons after joining the staff in March 2018 and helped guide the Cardinals to an overall record of 35-11-4 (23-6-2 MAC) and two of the program's three all-time appearances in the MAC Championship during her time there.


Etelman helped coach 11 All-MAC selections and eight all-region choices at BSU, including a program-record four all-region performers in 2020-21. The Cardinals have had 35 Academic All-MAC selections during her time in Muncie, and Tatiana Mason and Lexy Smith became the program's first United Soccer Coaches Scholar All-Americans in 2020-21.


Etelman coached at Ohio State and her alma mater, Miami (Ohio), prior to her time at Ball State and also has experience coaching at both the high school level, at Muncie Central High School, and on the club level, as part of the Ohio Olympic Development Program and the Braves Soccer Academy in Oxford, Ohio.


As a player, the former Katy Dolesh was a four-time All-Mid-American Conference player for the Miami RedHawks, where she played for then-assistant coach Nate Lie. A center midfielder at Miami from 2010-13, the Etelman was a second-team all-conference selection during her freshman season and a first-team choice in each of her final three years.


She finished with 31 goals and 16 assists for her career, earning NSCAA All-Region honors as a junior and senior. During her junior season in 2012, she led Miami to a school-record 20 wins, the MAC regular season and tournament championships, a top-25 national ranking and a victory over No. 20 Tennessee in the first round of the NCAA tournament.


She earned her Bachelor's degree in health promotion (2014) and a Master's in sport leadership (2015), both from Miami's department of Kinesiology and Health.

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Tyler Smaha

Tyler Smaha was promoted to assistant coach in July 2021 after joining Nate Lie's Xavier women's soccer coaching staff as Director of Player Analysis in July 2020. Smaha came to Xavier from Fort Hays State University where he served as an assistant for the women's soccer program.


On the addition of Smaha, Lie added, "Tyler is a young, driven, passionate, talented coach that I believe can add a great deal to our program. Besides working with the goalkeepers, Tyler will also be heavily involved in opponent scouting, data analysis, internal video and functional training. Tyler is forward-thinking and self-driven, and I believe that he will bring new energy and ideas. I've been tracking Tyler for a few years and I'm extremely excited for him to be part of Xavier Soccer."


Smaha had served as an assistant for the women's program at Fort Hays State University in Hays, Kansas since 2019. Prior to that, Smaha had worked as a volunteer assistant for the men's program at Drake.


Additionally, Smaha worked as a staff coach for both the Iowa and Kansas Olympic Development programs, and also coached on the prep level on both the club stage at Sporting Iowa and at Johnston High School.


Smaha holds a USSF C License and United Soccer Coaches Advanced National Diploma. He's also a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) through the National Strength and Conditioning Association.


As a player, Smaha spent three seasons at Buena Vista University, before spending his final season at Simpson College. He graduated from Simpson College with a Business Management degree with a Minor in Secondary Education in 2017, and earned a Master's degree in Health and Human Performance from Fort Hays State University in 2021.

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John Higgins

John Higgins was named the seventh men's soccer head coach in program history on March 28, 2022. Higgins joined the Musketeers from the University of Indianapolis where he compiled a 150-56-29 overall record in 12 seasons with the Greyhounds.


Higgins finished the 2021 fall season ranked fourth in the United Soccer Coaches (USC) Top-25 Poll after posting an 18-1-3 record and advancing to the semifinals of the NCAA Championships. All told, he posted a 31-1-7 record over two seasons in 2021 (spring season due to COVID-19 pandemic).


The three-time Great Lakes Valley Conference 'Coach of the Year' owns a 7-3-1 (.625) record in NCAA Tournament action and finished GLVC Tournament play with an 18-3-5 (.750) mark. He finished his coaching career at UIndy as the program's all-time leader in wins (150) and winning percentage (.700).


Higgins led the Greyhounds to a total of six conference championships from 2010-21, including three regular-season titles and three tournament championships. All told, he has made five NCAA Tournaments with two national semifinal appearances.


The Dunfermline, United Kingdom, native coached 54 All-GLVC selections at UIndy along with seven All-Midwest Region honorees and two All-Americans. Academically, the Greyhounds have earned the USC Team Academic Award in each season under Higgins.


Higgins played collegiately for the Greyhounds from 2004-08, earning all-conference and all-region honors as a senior. He was named to the 2007 CoSIDA/ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District 5 Team and earned Academic All-GLVC honors four times.


Higgins earned a bachelor's degree in physical education from UIndy in May of 2008 and a master's degree in curriculum and instruction from UIndy in 2010.


Higgins and his wife, Amber, have two daughters: Emily (9) and Jane (5).

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Shaun Mahoney

Shaun Mahoney was named associate head coach in May of 2022. He was previously the associate head coach at the University of Indianapolis from 2017-22.


Mahoney helped the Greyhounds post a 72-17-11 (.775) record in five seasons on the bench. UIndy also won two conference titles and advanced to three NCAA Tournaments, including two NCAA National Semifinal Appearances.


Mahoney also helped coach 35 all-conference players, including four “Player of the Year” honorees (1 Freshman of the Year, 2 Offensive Players’ of the Year, 2 Defensive Players’ of the Year).


Prior to UIndy, Mahoney was the head men’s soccer coach at his alma mater, Franklin College, from 2006-16. He finished his career as the program’s leader in wins. He advanced to the Heartland Conference Championship Semifinals on three occasions.


The Columbus, Ind., native hold’s a bachelor’s degree from Franklin College (’97) and a master’s degree from Indiana Wesleyan (’07).

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Ian Vicars

Ian Vicars was hired as assistant coach in May of 2022.


Vicars played in 21 matches for the Musketeers from 2014-17, recording one goal and one assist in 485 minutes of action. The Musketeers posted a 46-26-9 record with Vicars on the team and advanced to the third round of the NCAA Tournament in 2014.


Vicars finished his playing career at UIndy (2018-19) and played for two seasons under John Higgins. During the 2019 season, he served as a player/coach.


Vicars played in 32 matches, recording one goal and one assist. The Greyhounds posted a 28-10-3 record with Vicars on the bench and advanced to the NCAA Tournament Semifinals in 2019.


After graduation, Vicars worked in the financial sector – most recently serving as senior portfolio acquisitions analyst for Tiber Capital Group (2022).


The Liverpool, England, native, holds a bachelor’s degree from Xavier (’18) and a master’s degree from UIndy (’20).

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Alex Kamphaus

Alex Kamphaus joined the Xavier men's soccer program ahead of the 2021 season as the director of goalkeeping. He was promoted to assistant coach in March of 2023.


In 2022, he coached Cole Jensen to one of the best single-season performances in program history. He was named a United Soccer Coaches NCAA Division I Men's All-American, becoming the first goalkeeper in school history to earn the honors (second overall honoree from Xavier).


Jensen was also named BIG EAST Goalkeeper of the Year and participated in the adidas MLS College Showcase.


Jensen led the BIG EAST in shutouts (8), while ranking second in goals against average (0.89). He ranked tied for 10th in the NCAA in shutouts and tied for 34th in goals against average.


Jensen also finished the year ranked tied for fourth in single-season school history in goals against average (0.89), tied for fifth in total wins (9) and third in shutouts (8).


In 2021, he coached All-BIG EAST performer Matthew Rosenberg who finished the season with five shutouts and 41 saves. He posted a 1.04 goals against average and a .695 saves percentage. Rosenberg ranked 53rd in the NCAA in goals against average.


Kamphaus also works at FX Athletic Performance as a FX Trainer and is the Head of Goalkeeping.


The Cincinnati, Ohio, native played collegiately at Otterbein from 2008-11. He holds the United Soccer Coaches Level 1 Goalkeeping License.

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